There is still plenty of time to eat outdoors. Best meals this month were a plate of the stickiest chicken wings basted with honey till they took on a deep brown gloss which we ate without knife or fork; a luscious roast red pepper filled with tomatoes, anchovies and basil and a mackerel that I had baked with a breadcrumb crust spiked with that hippiest of spices, smoked paprika. Loud, robust flavours all, and so easy you could cook them standing on your head.

There are also some of the best melons around for years, with sweet juice and glowing orange flesh. Anything slightly salty, such as Parma ham or feta cheese will bring out their flavour even more. I have also taken to eating them with hot salad leaves such as rocket and peppery watercress and tossing them into a bowl with milky cheeses such as mozzarella or little rounds of chevre. Gorgeous, bright-flavoured food for what seems to be a never-ending summer.

Baked peppers

Sunshine food of the highest order and so much sweet juice you will need plenty of bread to mop it up. There is no need to skin or seed the tomatoes if you are using cherry tomatoes such as Gardeners Delight; this is rustic, rough-edged cooking and will be less interesting if you do. This makes a fine, light summer lunch with a plate of Taleggio or Robbiolo cheese afterwards.

Serves 4 as a light lunch

red peppers - 4
plump garlic cloves - 3
ripe cherry tomatoes - 16
olive oil
anchovy fillets - 6
basil - about 12-16 bushy leaves

Halve the peppers lengthways, tear out and discard the white core and seeds then lay the peppers cut side up in a baking dish. They should fit snugly. Peel the garlic, slice it finely and put a few slices in each pepper, together with a little salt and a tablespoon of oil. Halve the tomatoes and tuck them in.

Bake for 50 minutes at 200 c/gas 6 until the peppers have almost collapsed and are full of juice. Rinse, dry and roughly chop together the anchovies and basil leaves. Stir a spoonful of the basil and anchovy into each of the peppers, return to the oven for 10 minutes then serve warm or at room temperature with crusty bread.

Spiced, crumbed mackerel with smoked paprika

I sometimes feel as if I am on a one-man mission to make the world eat more mackerel. This recipe, spiced with smoked paprika and rings of soft, golden onions, is one of the best I have come up with for this underrated fish. I am not sure you need anything more with it than some steamed spinach or spinach salad. Some raspberries to follow, perhaps with thick, mild yoghurt, would be perfect.

Serves 2

mackerel - 4, filleted
onions - 1 medium to large
olive oil
parsley - a handful
garlic - 3 small cloves
smoked 'hot' paprika - tsp
fresh breadcrumbs - 100g
a lemon

Rinse and dry the mackerel and lay them skin-side down in a lightly oiled dish. Season them lightly with salt and pepper. Set the oven at 185 /gas 4.

Peel the onion and slice it into very thin rings, then let it cook over a moderate heat in a couple of tablespoons of oil until it starts to soften and colour.

Chop the parsley, not too finely, then peel and crush the garlic and stir into the onion with the smoked paprika, a seasoning of black pepper and salt and the breadcrumbs. Pour in 3 tablespoons of olive oil.

Spoon the spiced breadcrumbs evenly over the fish then bake for 20 minutes. The fish is done when the crumbs are golden and the fish is opaque and tender. Lift onto plates using a fish slice then squeeze the lemon over each one.

Charentais melon and parma ham salad

This is one of those salads you appreciate most on hot, bright days. Despite its light ingredients it is still substantial enough for lunch, especially if you follow it with a slice of fruit tart or the yoghurt and fruit dessert below. It is essential that the melon is as ripe as possible; I get into the habit of buying one a few days in advance to get it absolutely right. If I don't use it for this salad I might eat with Parma ham or as dessert with fresh raspberries.

Serves 2 as a light main dish

lemon juice - 1-2 tbsp
olive oil - 4 tbsp
Charentais melon - one, medium sized
Parma ham - 6 slices
buffalo mozzarella - 6 baby or 1 large ball
flat leaf parsley - a few bushy sprigs
rocket - 50-75g

Mix the lemon juice and olive oil then season it lightly with salt and pepper. Cut the melon into thick slices, remove and discard the seeds, retaining as much of the juice as possible. Cut the flesh into chunks - they should be a bit bigger than bite size if the salad isn't to look muddled - and drop them into a bowl. Tear or cut the ham into wide strips. Break the mozzarella in half, or, if you are using a large ball, cut it into thick slices. Add to the melon. Chop the parsley, toss gently with half the oil and lemon dressing.

Wash and shake dry the rocket leaves then dress them with the remaining half of the oil and lemon. Divide them between two large plates. Tuck the melon salad among the rocket leaves and serve immediately.

Sweet and sticky chicken wings

I wouldn't even attempt to eat these sweet and sticky bits of chicken with a knife and fork; they are strictly meant for picking up with your fingers, preferably while curled up on the sofa in front of the television. Although the mustard brings with it a certain amount of deep warmth, these are not at all spicy, and are for those who revel in an occasional sweet and extremely tactile supper.

You will need some sort of salad with them, perhaps something crunchy and cooling with beanshoots and cucumber in it.

Serves 2-3, depending on the size of your wings

chicken wings - 12 (about 600g)
grain mustard - 2 heaping tbsp
runny honey - a heaping tbsp
lemon - a large, juicy one
garlic - 3 large cloves

Heat the oven to 220 c/gas 7. Carefully check the chicken wings for stray feathers (they are often the least scrupulously plucked bit of the bird) then put them in a roasting tin.

Mix the mustard and honey with the juice from the lemon. You should get about 5 tablespoons from a large fruit. Peel the garlic, crush it and add it to the honey with a grinding of pepper and salt.

Toss the wings in the honey mixture and roast for 40 minutes by which time they will be a healthy colour. Turn the wings over and continue cooking for a further 10 minutes. They will now be dark and intensely sweet and sticky.

Stewed blackcurrants with cream and yoghurt

The most decadent summer dessert this. You will need something crisp in among all the soft folds of cream and fruit. Some posh wafers might be good here, or, if you can be bothered, some homemade shortbread, baked really thin and crisp.

Serves 4. For the fruit:

blackcurrants - 250g
sugar - 2 tbsp
cold water - 2 tbsp

For the cream:

double or whipping cream - 200g
strained yoghurt - 300g
caster sugar - 1 level tbsp
vanilla extract

To serve:

crisp biscuits or shortbread

Rinse the currants and pull them from their stalks. Drop them into a stainless steel or enamelled cast-iron pan and add the sugar and water. Bring to the boil over a low flame, taking care that the fruit does not burn. Lower the heat and allow them to bubble gently for five minutes or so until they have started to burst and you have a small quantity of deep purple juice. Switch off the heat and leave to cool.

Whip the cream softly, till it sits in waves. Stir in the yoghurt, gently, firmly, then the sugar and a couple of drops of vanilla extract.

Stir the blackcurrants briefly into the mixture, so you have ribbons of purple running through the yoghurt mixture. Serve with the biscuits.